Bradley Stakes ($100.000 Purse)
FG- For Four Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Turf
January 18, 2025

A strong field of eight would take part in the Bradley Stakes and probably deserved to be running for more than $100.000. In the end, it would be On Fire picking up the win for Mb Stables as the post time favorite. He was not our top pick to win but was among our choices. For Mb Stables, this is his third win in the Bradley Stakes, as he also won last year with Pxg, and back in 2019 with the late Crafty Shenanigans. J R Velazquez is the winning rider and does so for the second time. His prior win was win 2023. Congratulations to them! The time of the win was 1:39.18, the third fastest in the race’s history. Let’s take a look at how it happened:

(1/4 Mile- :23.40)- Apache Ascent goes out to the lead for High Voltage, and takes the field into the opening turn clear by a length over the second place Bears Stable- trained Ethereal Flame. Also stalking the pace is Big Jd Racing’s Je Lai Depense, and three wide here is TwinTowersRacing’s Jerk Pork. Right behind them, we have our next group of three, with the eventual winner from Mb Stables, On Fire, running in the fifth spot and only two lengths oof the lead. Fear The Stars (Riggins Racing) runs between horses while Americas Hope (Nakamura Stables) is on the outside. It’s a length and a half to the trailer, Evil Lives Here (Choppy Inc.).

(½ Mile- :46.98)- Apache Ascent is the leader down the backstretch but is not by himself any longer as Ethereal Flame has moved forward to join him at the front end. Both Je Lai Depense and Jerk Pork continue to hold a good position stalking the leaders, and directly behind them are both On Fire and Americas Hope. Fear The Stars lost a little bit of ground to them but still tries to keep in touch. Evil Lives Here runs his own race at the back.

(Top of Stretch, 2F To Go)- At the end of the backstretch, Ethereal Flame would grab the lead from Apache Ascent, and he would only draw away as they worked around the turn. His lead is a clear length as they enter the stretch as Apache Ascent starts to tire. For now, he is still second, but several are going to go by quickly in the stretch. Je Lai Depense was positioned very well here to ride the rail, and there would be a lane opening up for On Fire to come on through. For now, we had not seen a push from On Fire, but he never really had to make up a lot of ground to begin with and would have plenty of time in the stretch. Further on the outside, Jerk Pork tried to keep in touch with the front runners, and moving five wide to make a stretch run was Americas Hope. Nakamura Stables, earlier in the afternoon, saw Shes A Looker make a similar outside move to win the Busanda at AQU, so could this be deja vu for the trainer? Meanwhile, Fear The Stars was lacking response, and Evil Lives Here had an enormous task if he had run saved up.

(Finish- 1;39.18)- In the stretch, Ethereal Flame did his best, but the run of another “flame”, On Fire, would be too much for him to hold off. On Fire was within a length with a furlong to go and set to go by. Americas Hope was also running well but also needed to get by On Fire at this point. Approaching the wire, On Fire was much the best, drawing away from Ethereal Flame while not letting any of his other rivals have a chance to snag the win from him. He’ll win by a length, and Americas Hope will settle for second over Ethereal Flame and Je Lai Depense. Jerk Pork is the best of the rest, topping Fear The Stars, Apache Ascent, and Evil Lives Here.

About The Winner- On Fire, trained by Mb Stables and ridden to victory by J R Velazquez, is a five-year-old gelding by BC Classic winner Tactical and is out of BC Distaff winner Wicked Heat. He was bred in Ontario by Mb Stables as a yearling, and they have been together throughout. Congratulations to the connections! The win is his seventh in 21 starts and fourth stake win. His career earnings $1,324.43.

Track: Firm
Time: :23²  :46⁴  1:10²  1:39

$2 Mutuel Prices:

$1 Exacta: 2 – 4 Paid 12.70
$1 Trifecta: 2 – 4 – 1 Paid 72.30

Scratched: None

— NS

Categories: STAKES ARTICLES, Ungraded